That Fateful Day
by ekaki-uta
Summary: What happened that day on Mt. Oriander with Claus and the Mecha Drago? What became of Claus when decided to avenge Hinawa?


Hey guys!

I finally started playing the English patch of Mother 3 (after struggling with the Japanese version for a while), and it's made me even sadder because of Claus and Lucas' story.

I thought it was kinda unfair that Claus only gets one battle where you can play as him, and after that he isn't seen again until.. Well, you know. So I decided to make an account of what would've happened on that Mountain.

Enjoy! And R&R, please!

{:3

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><p><strong>One Fateful Day<strong>

"I'm going to avenge Mom."

Claus panted hardly. He had finally reached Mt. Oriander.

The orange-haired boy was looking for something: a monster that only last night had attacked him and his twin brother Lucas, and had killed his mother, Hinawa. The young boy, no more than ten years old, had decided that he would go after the thing and make it pay for their mother's death. So he took a knife his father Flint had made and set off into the mountains. He had been running all morning, only stopping for a bit of rest now and then. The sun was high up in the sky by the time he had reached his destination.

He didn't have to look far. There it was; the same Drago from last night. It was missing a fang; that same fang was what had pierced his mother's heart.

Claus swallowed. The thing was menacing, with its mechanical body and glowing red eye. Steam occasionally shot out from its metal parts. The ground shook as it took slow, heavy steps. Seeing the boy, it let out a thunderous roar.

"I-I'm not afraid of you!" he said defiantly. Claus pulled out his father's knife and held it with both hands.

"Y-You killed my Mom! And now.. Y-You're going to pay!"

His voice wavered, but his resolve was strong. He wasn't leaving until this beast was dead. Not hesitating, he ran forward, aiming for the beast's heart.

The Drago seemed confused at first; the boy's weapon did nothing to pierce its thick hide. It shoved the boy with its massive foot, sending him tumbling away.

Claus yelped, but maintained his balance and landed on his toes. He circled around the Drago. It was slow, so it couldn't turn around as quickly as he was running. Claus jumped onto it from behind and started jabbing at it, to no avail. He cursed as the Drago shook him off and sent him smashing onto the rocky outcroppings by the mountainside.

He had let go of his knife while he was hurtled onto the rocks, so he picked up some stones and flung them at the Drago, aiming for its eye. One of the stones hit its mark, and the beast reared, going for Claus. The boy moved just before its jaws closed in on him.

He jumped off the rock face, grabbing the knife that had fallen on the ground. The Drago had moved quickly, though, and Claus felt its jaws close over him.

There was an audible crunch as the Drago's jaws clamped onto his right forearm, teeth sinking into his arm and breaking his bones.

He screamed.

Tears were now flowing down his cheeks. His face was burning. The beast's teeth felt like red-hot steel against his flesh, and the pain was now coursing through his entire body.

Claus held onto the knife tighter as he felt himself being pulled up by his arm. He was close enough that he could smell the Drago's foul breath. He waited for the right moment to attack: too early and it would miss; too late and the Drago would snap the boy's right arm in two. Just as he felt his feet lift off the ground, he jabbed the knife as hard as he could into the space where the Drago's missing fang used to be. It bellowed in pain and let go of him, and he hit the ground hard.

Cradling his bad arm, he started rolling towards the nearest rock face. If he crawled under it, the Drago wouldn't be able to reach him. Just as soon as he got there though, he felt the monster's teeth on his foot. He tried to wriggle out of his shoe, but the beast held on, trying to drag him out again.

It was then that he remembered what Aeolia had taught him not hours before. Instead of trying to block out the pain, he let himself feel the full brunt of it. The stabbing pain in his arm. The aching in his back. The pulling sensation he felt on his leg.

Whimpering, he tried to concentrate.

Let the discomfort build up.

He felt light-headed, and everything was moving in slow motion.

He shut his eyes.

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><p><em>"That's it. Let the discomfort build up."<em>

_Claus was with Aeolia, and he was being taught to use his PSI powers. They were in a hot spring, and the Magypsy was dunking the boy into the water. Each time his head went under, memories of the night before kept reappearing in his head. His mother and the Mecha-Drago. Him and Lucas falling into the river. Him holding Lucas' hand as they were swept by the current. The drowning sensation, the burning in his throat as he started swallowing water by the mouthful.._

_He choked, and he felt water enter his lungs, but he held remained beneath the surface._

_Feeling something welling up inside him, he allowed those memories to take over. He felt a new sensation, apart from the pain in his chest and the sadness in his heart. It felt.. different. Powerful._

_It was rising, that strange new feeling, and all of a sudden.._

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><p>He let it out.<p>

A flash of light, and he activated his PSI power. The light engulfed him and made its way to the Drago, and it howled as it was hit by the energy, which cut through its flesh. The beast lumbered and fell to the ground with a thud. Claus groaned as he tried to stand, leaning against the rock to steady himself. His whole body ached, and he moaned in agony.

But he had done it. He had avenged his mother. He looked over at the Drago with a weak but triumphant smile.

It was gone.

He turned around too late, and heard the loud clang of the beast's robotic body against his as it bashed him from the side.

And then he was falling.

The Drago's last attack had pushed him off the edge of the mountain. Now he had nowhere to go but down.

He cried out at first; a loud, horrible shriek of shock and agony. He was trembling as he fell, half from the pain he felt and half from the realization that he was going to die.

Claus thought of his mother.

"She wouldn't have wanted this," he thought. "I'm sorry, Mom." He started crying again, and his tears turned into orbs of clear liquid as they left his eyes. If he weren't plummeting to his doom, it would have seemed beautiful.

Claus felt a sudden jolt as his body hit the ground, but it didn't hurt anymore. And as he lay there, blood gushing out of his wounds and salty tears dripping from his cheek onto the hot sand below him, one thought crossed his mind:

It would all be over soon.


End file.
